BEIJING, June 2 (Xinhua) -- Zhongnanhai, the office compound ofthe Chinese Communist Party (CPC) Central Committee and central government in Beijing, has been designated as a "key site" of cultural relics protection, according to a government announcement on Friday.

Located to the west of the Forbidden City, the historically famous royal garden of Zhongnanhai has been home to late leaders Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, who both worked and lived there.

The compound is still the official place of the central leadership, including the CPC Central Committee and the State Council.

It is one of the 1,081 places included in a list of "key cultural relics sites" issued by the State Council on Friday. This is the sixth list of its kind published by the government.

"Zhongnanhai has witnessed important events in China's history. It is a key cultural relics site also for its cultural value," said Xie Chensheng, honorary chairman of the Chinese Academy of Cultural Relics Study, in an interview with Xinhua.

Zhongnanhai was first built during the Liao Dynasty (915-1125), then rebuilt and renovated continually during the subsequent Yuan (1279-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.

"The cultural relics in Zhongnanhai have remained largely intact, except that some were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution," said 83-year-old cultural relics expert Luo Zhewen.

Many cultural relics sites and buildings are still being used for offices and residences in China, just like the Zhongnanhai compound, said Luo. "The preservation of Zhongnanhai will set an example for the maintenance and protection of other cultural relics sites across the nation." Enditem